Larry Mac
Sr. Member
Natstats Information
Only the ringers and shoes recorded in a pitcher's 3 highest tournament averages from tournaments played in the last 12 months or last 10 tournaments, which ever comes first, are used to calculate their official "3-Hi" average. This is the wording taken from the Natstats page. Why not use the average for all the games that you have played? It looks like your true pitching ability could be off quite a bit just using the top 3 games out of 10 tournament. You might be hot for three of the tournament and be back to normal in the other 7 and your Natstats would be higher than your true average.
Larry Mac
Logged
Dean Schmitz
Full Member
Re: Natstats Information
You ask a very good question and it is a question that has been asked many times since the advent of NATSTATS in the early 1990's. It is unfortunate that there is not some type of a new member packet available from either charters, or the NHPA with explanations as to why things are as they are in organized horseshoes. And I know that the last thing you want to hear is, "Well, that's just the way it is so deal with it." That attitude, along with not knowing the true reasons why things are as they are, has cost the NHPA and charters the loss of many members over the years. You may not agree with everything, but at least you would have an understanding to the reasoning why things came about as they did.
NATSTATS was established as a way to unify how averages are derived for all members of the NHPA. Its main purpose was to seed members who entered the world tournament. Before NATSTATS there were at least a half dozen ways charters established ringer averages for their members. One charter would use a top three tournaments pitched within a calendar year format, another charter a running average format, another charter how you pitched last week, and so on. All that it took to enter the world tournament prior to NATSTATS was an entry form with a ringer average and a verifying signature from a charter officer. An entrant may end up in a group that has a multitude of the different ways to establish a ringer average, plus a few that had forged signatures so that they could enter with a lower average, or didn't meet the minimum tournament requirement, and, in some cases, hadn't played in any tournaments for a few years. The tournament director had no way of knowing that was what and what was true. Entering the world tournament was on an honor system, and as much as we would like to believe it to be true, not all horseshoe pitchers are honest. Now when you enter the world tournament, or any sanctioned tournament throughout the country, you know that you are competing against others whose ringers average has been derived in the exact same method as yours.
When NATSTATS was being planned the NHPA president asked charter presidents to send their opinions on proposed options as to how a uniform ringer average could be established. I was a charter president at the time and responded. Michigan used a top three tournament for an entire year so if a pitcher got hot for a couple of weeks then went back to their normal abilities they would be stuck with that average until the next season. There were three options, a running average, a top three from the last ten tournaments or within a year, and the other slips my mind right now. Being from a cold weather state, Michigan, I strongly supported the top three tournaments from the last ten tournaments or within a year. I believed that it was the best option to promote participation in my charter. Pitchers could enter the April and May tournaments, when the weather conditions are iffy and a pitcher has yet to round into top form, those tournaments would have little, if any, affect on their averages. With a running average a few poor tournaments would greatly affect their average because if they were a 50% pitcher it would be difficult to make up some 35 to 40% tournaments. Since most pitchers take pride in having as high as ringer average as possible, and like to see progress, such as playing in Class D in the state tournament instead of Class E or F, many of these pitchers would not play in tournaments until they felt confident that they were pitching well enough as to not hurt their chances.
The ten-tournament rule has both advantages and drawbacks. If you have one or two exceptional tournaments where everything goes right it does take playing in eight or nine more tournaments to get those erased. You wouldn't have to play in so many tournaments if only five or eight were the requirement to have a more true average for yourself. However, if you have three tournaments that reflect your true abilities, or you have reached a goal, and then suddenly go into a slump you have seven tournaments in which you can work yourself out of it without affecting your average. Having only two or five tournament to work out of a slump may discourage them from playing in tournaments. And, there are those who have reached the point where their best averages are going to be dropped who will stop playing in tournaments so that they can be in a higher class at the state tournament, and this may be truer with higher average pitchers than lower average pitchers.
NATSTATS may not be perfect but it does treat all members equally. Everyone has the same weighted average derived in the same manner as everyone else who plays. This type of system may be unique to horseshoes but horseshoes is a unique game. The nicest and friendliest people in the world surround you. Seek them out. Soon your ringer average will just become a number and the number of friends you have will greatly increase.
Fred Smith, Hall of Fame Member, Michigan
Deceased 2012 at age 58
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